Volunteering

The museum is supported by volunteers who help with the running of the museum shop, provide front-of-house duties, support the education team, assist with collections and exhibitions, and help the museum at outside events such as National Play Day and Armed Forces Weekend.

If you would like to join a friendly team of volunteers call into the Museum for a chat.
Volunteering can be arranged to fit in with your lifestyle.

Shop/Front-of-house: The museum shop is managed by the Friends and run by a team of volunteers. As well as dealing with shop sales, shop volunteers provide front-of-house duties. This involves welcoming visitors, providing them with guidance and information and minor invigilation. Some shop volunteers demonstrate how to weave on the handloom.
If you would like to help out in this role call David Birks, the Acting Museum Manager, on 01225 751339 or email david.birks@trowbridge.gov.uk

Collections: There is currently a small team of volunteers helping assistant with the collections. This involves a range of tasks from listing and compiling catalogue records, photographing objects, retrieving and returning objects from the store and checking archived boxes against the computer database.

If you are interested in supporting the collections team contact Rachel Holtom on 01225 751339.

Learning and Outreach: The Learning and Outreach team are always looking for volunteers to support their work. They work with a broad range of groups including schools and colleges, families and young people and the elderly, and quite a lot of the work is outside in the community. It doesn’t matter if you haven’t worked in an educational role before and you don’t need any specialist knowledge, but an enthusiasm for history, a willingness to work with a range of audiences and a sense of fun are important. A lot of the work involve role-playing historical characters so you do need to be prepared to dress in period costume. All Learning and Outreach volunteers will have to undertake a basic online Safeguarding Children course (about 1 hour) and will be asked to undergo an Enhanced DBS check.

Exhibitions: The museum changes its temporary exhibitions three to four times each year and often need additional support when the exhibitions are being installed. This involves preparing display panels and mounting and displaying objects and pictures. Good practical DIY skills and attention to detail are very important in this role.

Events: The museum participates in a number of events offsite including Armed Forces Weekend and National Play Day in Trowbridge Park, May Fair and Christmas Light Switch-On in Fore Street and as well as events in the Town Hall and The Shires. These often require additional volunteer support, and frequently involve dressing in period costume and include tasks such as leading simple craft activities, dressing up, handing our promotional literature and selling shop stock.

Friends of The Trowridge Museum won a Prestigious National Award

The Friends are delighted to announce that their Newsletter has been awarded first prize in the 2016 British Association of Friends Of Museums Newsletter Competition for friends organisations under 250 members.